The profession of architecture is thought to need the most time. Many students and architects say that they do not have time for their personal lives because of their careers and studies. Professionals that are involved in the rat race spend both day and night working. According to popular belief, leaving your personal life behind when working as an architect is required. Whereas the field necessitates the architects’ societal understanding, they must also take their time. There is no question that everyone needs to find a work-life balance.
Work-Life Balance
The idea of work-life balance, sometimes known as “family-friendly” working rules, was developed in the 1960s as a response to the need to balance work and family obligations. While maintaining a satisfactory balance between work and non-work is what is meant by work-life balance, in the professions of the Architecture industry this is made more difficult by the project-based nature of the work, which requires travel to and from projects, long hours to meet project deadlines, and the need to show commitment to maintaining employment security.
Architects work life
An architect’s working life can be classified into two categories. the one in which the architect works as a salaried employee of another architect spends the majority of their time following orders from their superiors and producing 2D or 3D drawings The principal architect is the other architect, and he spends the majority of his time scurrying around looking for projects and managing the exterior work. In a survey, it was discovered that salaried architects in practice have the most trouble juggling their job commitments with their obligations. Even when they put in long hours, sole practitioners and principals/directors of practices or businesses report much higher levels of job satisfaction when they have more control over how they spend their time.
Work-life balance challenges
Excessive Working hours
Long work hours are a common practice among salaried architects, especially when demonstrating exceptionally high levels of devotion. The economic and employment insecurity that has persisted in the construction business, and consequently the architecture profession, has produced an atmosphere in which great devotion is required to keep one’s job. Many people claim to work from home in the evenings and on weekends to feel like they can keep up with the burden.
Some peaks and troughs need to be managed because the work is project-based. To avoid running out of work for them during the troughs, practices are hesitant to hire additional staff during the peaks. Practices frequently have to work weekends since it is nearly hard for them to estimate staffing needs far enough in advance. Extended workdays can cause health issues and family issues.
Travel
Projects that are not based locally are frequently a part of work in the construction business, which includes architecture. Projects may be located far from the project architect’s base of operations and a firm may have clients who operate on a national scale. Several interviewees said that they had to travel long distances to meetings.
Poor planning and organization by employers, as well as their expectations that workers will put in (any number of) additional hours and travel great distances to satisfy workload demands, are major contributors to many work-life balance issues. This is a topic that was brought up frequently by paid architects and is culturally ingrained in the field. At the same time, it was mentioned that the construction industry has peaks and troughs and that the project-based nature of the job in the sector has a detrimental effect.
Lack of Control/Flexibility over Working Time | Work life balance
Many of the solo practitioners and principals mentioned a lack of flexibility when they were engaged in practices; one received a written warning for arriving late most mornings, even though she stayed later in the evenings and was working more hours than she was contracted for. It’s interesting to note that despite the perception of flexibility in the use and management of time as a positive, none of the self-employed respondents mentioned it while deciding to start their own business.
Piece of Advice
One should realize that maintaining a healthy balance between one’s personal and professional lives is important as a human being. One can engage in various self-learning techniques to combat it.
Recognize your limitations and refuse to take on tasks you cannot accomplish.
Learn to recognize your limits and set them. Establish strict guidelines for how late you wish to work and how many days you will be absent from work. These strict boundaries shouldn’t be violated. Make sure this includes declining work when you are unable to handle it. Say no to more work that you know you won’t be able to complete by the deadline if you are already overburdened with tasks. When you feel overwhelmed, stop and take it slower.
Make a line and say it out loud
Learn how to bargain with both clients and superiors. When there is too much work, speak up because clients and managers might not be aware that you have other more. Architects should develop the ability to manage both the current and potential future work. One might think about inquiring about progressive work. As a result, architects can better manage their time and can up important work obligations when they are unable to take on more work or fulfill deadlines. Early and prompt notification ensures that architects do not become overburdened with work and gives the person in charge a heads-up.
Control your Priorities
Time management is just as crucial as task management. Architects should consider what matters most and is urgent against what is less critical. It could be good to set up their tasks according to the Eisenhower Matrix. According to the Eisenhower Matrix, tasks can be classified as urgent and important, important but not urgent, urgent but not important, urgent but not important, and not important.
Value your well-being | Work life balance
Since we only have a limited amount of time on Earth, it is crucial to enjoy every moment. On Earth, everything we do should be joyful, yet working nonstop could prevent this. This suggests that we should put our health and wellness before work and that taking care of one’s physical and mental health may, in the long term, improve an architect’s abilities.
It is crucial to take pauses when necessary. With breaks, it keeps us from burning out and gives us time to grow more passionate about our work. We are better at what we do at work the greater our living quality is. Make sure that these pauses are brief and should be used to consume media or technology. Rest from them as well. Learning to take breaks helps one avoid procrastinating or simply slacking off. A too-long rest can be exhausting, just as overworking.
Conclusion
Better living conditions will enable architects to plan and build environments of higher quality. It is difficult to achieve work-life balance, but it is crucial to abandon preconceived notions about what life is like for architects. This issue won’t be fixed overnight, but with careful planning, a little effort, and the support of those who value work-life balance, architects’ relationships with their jobs can be modified for the better. You can accomplish anything, but not everything.
References:
Ahmad, A. A. B., 2022. Architects: How to achieve work-life balance. [Online]
Available at: https://www.re-thinkingthefuture.com/architectural-community/a3921-architects-how-to-achieve-work-life-balance/
[Accessed 27 10 2022].
Valerie Caven, A. B. R., 2010. WORK-LIFE BALANCE AMONG ARCHITECTS. UK, Association of Researchers in Construction Management.
